Detroit School Lacks Toilet Paper, Light Bulbs

ClickonDetroit.com ^ | 1/07/09

[NormsRevenge]

DETROIT -- A Detroit elementary school is asking for donations of toilet paper and light bulbs to keep their school functioning.

The principal of the Academy of Americas sent a letter to staff, parents and partners asking for donations of items "that are of the utmost importance for proper school functioning and most importantly for student health and safety."

In the letter, Principal Naomi Khalil cited budget constraints within the district as the reason why the school could no longer stock the items.

The district is grappling with a more than $400 million budget deficit and is on the verge of being assigned an emergency financial manager by the state.

The letter asks for toilet paper, paper towel rolls, trash bags and 60, 100 or 150-watt light bulbs.

[NormsRevenge]

Can you say the word .. bail-out , children?

Yes, I knew you could.

[WilliamofCarmichael]

The ultimate green school! Detroit leads the way. Congratulations, Detroit!

[the invisib1e hand]

Bailout!

[Oshkalaboomboom]

I bet if they looked around they could find a few administrators, guidance counselors, assistant principals, etc., that could safely be let go without affecting proper school functioning or student health and safety. That should free up plenty of toilet paper money.

[SlapHappyPappy]

I read somewhere that this district has a $15,000 per student budget. If that is accurate they have a lot of explaining to do. I have to wonder how many administrators they have in this district. Eliminate one $80,000 salary for a bogus bureaucrat and you can buy an awful lot of light bulbs and cases of toilet paper.

[Lizavetta]

And as usual, nobody will bother to find out why the school didn't get funds for this, or if they did, why it didn't get spent on toilet paper and light bulbs.

Nobody will investigate, nobody will be punished, and the taxpayers will get another bond this November advertised ad nauseum to "fully fund" OUR SCHOOLS.

I don't know who I despise more - the utterly disgusting people who steal or the moronic taxpayers who continue to vote them in.

[I_Like_Spam]

Don’t they have school taxes to pay for those kinds of items in Detroit?

I bet the school in question does have school lunches.

Maybe if the school cut the lunch program, unnecessary as the kids could brownbag it, they’d have enough left over for light bulbs and toilet paper?

[Homer1]

Wow, what a way to prioritize their spending. I’m unimpressed. Where’s my pitchfork.

[Zack Nguyen]

Well said.

[traumer]

OBAMA !!!

[Lancey Howard]

Well, if there are no light bulbs then everybody is in the dark, and if everybody is in the dark then nobody will see if they just use their hands and then wash them in the sink.

[DBrow]

I think there should be an investigation into whether people stole the items.

Could have been for personal use, or someone on the janitorial staff could have a second job and used the publicly-funded toilet paper to the second job, where he charged them for it. I’ve seen this.

[capydick]

Principal Naomi Khalil cited budget constraints within the district as the reason why the school could no longer stock the items.

I wonder how many administrators, assistants and other flotsam is on the payroll in this district?

[Carley]

Heaven forbid a redundant school administrator would be fired.

[Covenantor]

Odds are that the custodial staff are union and have separate budgets which the principals cannot touch.

Many years ago in NYC when designing public schools we ran up against this problem. One head custodian bragged that he bought a Jeep Cheroke with a snow plow from his annual budget...no parking lots and city plowed the streets. His bragged that best trick was that he barely spent any money on toilet paper because he dipped the rolls in a shallow pan of shellac. Is it any wonder that students become vandals at times?

They also had a decisive say in the use materials. Trying to get materials that had been approved in other school districts was very nearly impossible.

As they say, “The fix was in.”

[patton]

Just for fun, call your city or county comptrollar, and ask him what your per pupil spending is.

Then ask him if that number includes bonds, retirement contributions, teacher training, grounds maintenance, trash removal, etc.

Unless you live on Mars, I will bet the number in your town, all things included, is north of $20k/kid/yr.

(In my town it is about $28k)

[Wil H]

Well, when they wipe their asses with their hands, like the Arabs do, they wont see how sh**ty they are!

Problem solved..

[Lizavetta]

His bragged that best trick was that he barely spent any money on toilet paper because he dipped the rolls in a shallow pan of shellac.

I must be dense tonight. Explain what the point of this was. I'm not getting it.

[Covenantor]

By dipping the ends of toilet paper rolls in the shellac it effectively glued the leaves together, making it impossible to unroll without ripping tiny pieces off. It stopped the flying TP rolls, but as he mentioned the number of clogged toilets went way up and he didn’t feel the need to unclog them in any great hurry. He was a nasty racist SOB that was untouchable.